"No, she's incredibly stupid, not that smart," Fan Qian said with a cold laugh.

Then he added, "That thing grows underground, so it's normal that it's hard to find. Everyone, look down and check carefully!"

"good!"

"yes!"

Shui Qing and Fan Jin were drinking tea, eating pastries, and reading books inside the house.

Since the physical labor was outsourced, Fan Jin cooked and assisted her, taking care of all the work except for stir-frying, such as picking, washing, chopping, rinsing rice, and starting the fire. This made Shui Qing feel that life was exceptionally leisurely and carefree.

"How many people are working today, and how many kilograms of potatoes do we need to buy?" Shui Qing lay on the tatami mat with a low table beside her. She took a bite of the crumbly jujube blossom pastry, then sipped some flower tea to cleanse her palate, and asked casually.

Fan Jin was sitting upright in a round-backed chair by the window, reading a book.

Upon hearing this, he looked up and gave a number.

Then, as if remembering something, he frowned and said, "When I went out this morning, I saw my eldest brother leading Dazhu and the other three, carrying hoes, out the door."

Shui Qing, who had been leisurely eating and drinking while reclining, became interested upon hearing Fan Jin's words and sat up to ask, "They won't get out of bed, will they?"

In her limited memory, these men would shirk their responsibilities whenever possible.

He has absolutely no skills, but he has an insane temper.

Fan Jin shook his head. "No, I think they probably went to find potatoes."

Shui Qing laughed, "That's perfect."

Their potatoes weren't dug up from the wild woods at all; let them go find them.

"Shuiqing, my elder brother..." Fan Jin hesitated, wanting to say something but stopping himself.

Shui Qing patted the pastry crumbs off her hands and said casually, "What can't we talk about?"

Fan Jin pursed his lips and hesitated before saying, "My elder brother isn't exactly upright. If we can't find him, I'm afraid he might have other bad intentions."

"You mean he's after our potatoes?" Shuiqing quickly concluded.

Fan Jin nodded.

After a moment of eye contact, Shui Qing broke the silence: "It's alright, we'll deal with whatever comes our way and see what tricks he comes up with next."

"Um."

Their courtyard wall was built high, and the adobe bricks they used were heavy and thick.

The top was densely studded with iron nails and bamboo skewers.

Fan Qian wanted to sneak into the courtyard to steal, but he didn't have the ability.

The only thing they could come up with was potatoes planted in the fields.

That's not urgent; we need to catch the culprit red-handed first.

Fan Qian and his four sons wandered around for more than ten days without finding anything!

Everyone's patience has completely run out.

"Father, if we keep searching, we'll miss our farmland."

Rice is planted in March and April, and it's already early February. In a few days, the fields will need to be plowed.

They are not as hard-working as my second uncle, who has oxen and donkeys to plow the fields.

If we don't conserve some energy, how can we possibly manage digging?

"By the way, Dad, why don't we go to Uncle's field and dig up some potatoes to take home and eat?"

"That's a great idea! It'll save us some food!"

"Anyway, Second Uncle grows a lot, and we are his closest relatives, so Second Uncle wouldn't be so stingy."